https://www.wevideo.com/hub#editor/2694098128

The most impactful takeaways I have learned from my research is how often my topic has been dissected by other curious individuals. It is no surprise how challenging single mothers have it, especially in a world where traditional nuclear families are so normalized. My research made me see firsthand that the absence of parents, external forces, money, time, and even a pandemic are all aspects that can shape the future of children and their behaviors. When listening to my project I hope people realize the struggles that single mothers face and how often they are judged by society for situations they cannot control. 

This past month has been extremely stressful and I wish I went about a lot of the things differently. With dances taking so much unnecessary time out of my life as well as finals and missing assignments I did not prioritize this project as much as I should have. A lot has happened in the past month that I have not actually processed until now. We went from spring, to prom, to prom house, to finals and now we are graduating in less than 72 hours which seems so surreal. I haven’t taken any time to reflect on what I did this month and what I have accomplished but thinking about it stresses me out. We are so close to the finish line and being able to breathe again is almost near, I cannot wait!!

The most important thing I have learned about myself during my time here at NNHS is to stay active. Make it your mission to go to any and every school event. Ever since my sophomore year was lost due to covid, I made it my goal to take nothing for granted. As soon as we went back to school I knew I had to make up for the loss of time, therefore I attempted to go to every school event and I do not regret my decisions. Without this decision, I would have never broadened my friend group and I would still be hanging out with the two people I did sophomore year. CHANGE IS GOOD!!! As a senior my biggest takeaway is to be friendly with everyone and not judge a book by its cover; as corny as it sounds, it’s so true. My freshman self would have never thought I would be hanging out with the people I am today, but I am so happy I am. These people bring me the most elation I have ever felt and will forever stay my lifelong best friends, no matter our future. 

For someone who loves to experience new places, I have had the worst luck on travel days. My partner and crime plus my OG travel buddy is my father. He will forever and always be my favorite person to travel with because of three reasons. We always arrive on time, I always have TSA pre-check, and we get to hang out in the admirals club. Traveling with him is pure luxury and we never seem to run into any problems, plus we always manage to escape the never-ending lines. He is the human version of a six-flags fast pass. 

Now, traveling with my mother is a different story. It just so happens that we switch roles and I play mom and she plays daughter. Fun fact: there has never been a trip where we did everything successfully, and today is the day I share one out of my three horror stories that involve traveling with Carmella Marie Lembach. 

I’ll start us off with the most dramatic travel day of all time. This just so happens to be the most recent too, it was our adventure to Rivera Maya for senior spring break. The chaos begins bright and early at 4:00 am for our 6:30 flight to Minneapolis. We packed the car the night before and were surprisingly ready to go by 3:50 which was shocking. As my father is driving he is speaking out loud asking if we have the following things. Passport? ID? Sunscreen? Flat iron? With him being the only male in the house and always being accompanied by three girls, he understands our forgetful tendencies. The funny thing is we always answer “yes” agitated but end up forgetting one of the things he mentions in the car prior. Anyways, we arrive at our terminal safe and sound and are ready to endure the brutally long travel day ahead of us. Our first inconvenience was our boarding passes. Typically our problems begin within thirty minutes of being present at the airport, but this time was different, it was as soon as we stepped in front of the kiosk which was probably two minutes after getting out of the car. The flashing red lights demanding attention to our station was let alone the most embarrassing moment of my existence but possibly getting escorted to someone who could help was even worse. The lady looks at my mother and me and says these words: “I’m afraid to tell you we can’t print out your boarding pass because your boarding pass and your ID doesn’t match up.” In other words, my mom’s name is Carmella but she put Carmie on her ticket. They told us we had to call Expedia and request a name change. Forty-four minutes later and conversing with the stewardess in Spanish the name was changed. We rushed to security to get our carry-ons checked and SPRINTED to gate E8. We were the last to board and just to our luck we were on the plane for an hour because there were technical issues with the plane. We found out during our flight that we will be missing the conjoining one so we knew right away that we had to talk to someone to book another flight. As soon as we get off the plane we were directed to talk to an employee to assist us with our next flight. This surprisingly took five minutes and she happened to get us into a flight that was already boarding. Again, we sprinted to yet another gate and were the last to board for the second time in two hours. By 11:00 am my mom and I completed a 5k in the airport, we were vacation-ready. Thankfully there were no technical issues this time and we arrive safe and sound in Rivera Maya three hours later. We get off the plane, go to customs, and go to baggage claim. As soon as we thought our day was done, we find out our bags are in Michigan.. 

Traveling has never been our cup of tea, but we have accumulated some of the funniest stories that I can’t wait to tell my children. Enjoy the following pictures that express my mother and I’s inconveniences Saturday, March 26th, 2022.

I could honestly end this question once and for all just by saying two words, “dress shopping” but that’s too easy. The whole preparation for a school dance has no reason to be as stressful as it is. There are so many components that are involved in planning a dance that no one ever thinks about. And with my four years of experience, I still have not mastered the appropriate time to plan the event. But I do know one thing, add the guys in the group chat once everything is finalized. They are no help whatsoever and I find the most effective way of making sure they will be in attendance is by giving them an itinerary of what Saturday consists of and what time they need to be where. And I wish that could be me. But the girls go about it a little differently. In fact, as soon as we are three months away from the actual event I tend to be added to four different group chats, and the chaos beings from there. My phone is immediately obliterated with text messages and slammed with eight different google forms that need to be submitted by 9:00 pm, plus screenshots of several dinner menus and venues of where the group should eat. Oh, did I mention the slander we give in a whole other group chat when we don’t like someone’s idea? Absolutely brutal; in conclusion, closely resembles AP Calc homework, just on steroids. 

But that’s just the planning part…

Finding a dress is another arduous expedition. And believe it or not, there are only two ways to go about it. You can take the time-consuming process of browsing the web and making your purchase through an online boutique; or, you can take the exaggerated drive to a mall, or even worse, Peaches. With online shopping, your first step is to actually find what you are looking for, and to be completely frank many would stop here, which is fair. I mean how could you choose a singular dress from all the stores that we are allotted to? Not to mention if you find the perfect dress you are LUCKY if it comes in your size. Recently, I was asked to one of my best friends’ Prom and I was inevitably delighted at the thought of spending an entire day with the people I don’t get to see very often. However, this now means I need to find THREE dresses. Finding one is daunting as is, but three? As soon as I realized what I was getting myself into my mom and I instantly got to work. While aimlessly looking through dresses and sending screenshots back and forth to one another which probably consumed seven hours of my existence that I will never be getting back, we found all three dresses, in my size, with ample time to spare and to worry about more significant matters.

So we thought…

As soon as we thought our expedition was over we were faced with yet another inconvenience. A month later we received an email that none of the dresses will ship in time… Awesome!  Back to square one we go, and to the place I hate the most, Peaches. If you are not aware of Peaches let me just say it is easily deemed my least favorite place on earth. Since it’s located in Chicago the drive alone will make you want to turn around within fifteen minutes, not to mention the business is located in a strip mall with approximately five spots to argue over, you are better off parking three blocks away and taking a nice stroll before you are completely blinded upon your entry with the number of flashy gowns and sparkles they have sitting on display. As soon as you walk in you are introduced to an employee who is absolutely exuberated to share her speech which establishes rules on how the place works. Considering my frequent visits I honestly could recite the script from top to bottom, but I’ll save you the jazz hands and fake animation. Basically, you are given a number and are called for when your dressing room is available. In the meantime, you pick three dresses from the floor and wait for your number to be called. You are allotted only 50 minutes in the dressing room so being prepared is crucial. After trying on a dress, you walk out, they zip you up, and then you are faced with a crowd of impatient individuals who are waiting for their turn in the dressing room. It’s never a euphoric moment, mostly anxiety-ridden since judgy parents are evaluating you on how you look from afar, by the way, that’s the first time you are actually seeing yourself in a mirror because the architect thought it would be a good idea to put not one mirror in the dressing rooms… But after you spend 50 minutes playing dress up you have to make your final decision. As soon as you make up your mind you are immediately rushed to the cash register in a span of three seconds before you change your mind; at least the cash register is excited to see you! After spending a ridiculous amount of money and shedding a tear or two while you hand the cashier your credit card. You’re finally, at ease! 

So yeah… worth it! 

“Where are you going to high school?”

This was such a daunting discussion in junior high. I distinctively remember being asked where I wanted to go to high school and what I wanted to do with my future and I scrutinized these as the most traumatizing questions someone could possibly ask at my age. I also never responded with an actual answer it was always “I don’t know” followed by “I don’t care” and the simple shoulder shrug. I found this as the bluntest way to end a conversation without ignoring my parents entirely. But now these questions are resurfacing once more and becoming significantly more prominent because our futures are actually near and my parents will officially not take my shoulder shrugs as a valid answer anymore. 

I remember in seventh grade shadowing different people and following them to class as if I was a student at their school. Looking back on it I knew if I was interested in attending within the first few minutes of being present within a classroom. I recall St. Francis being my first visit. Everyone was so pleasant there, I thought for sure I’d go there, but I could not get over how small the school was and not to mention, who I would be friends with. I knew no one. My second visit was at Benet. Everything that could have gone wrong, did. My shadow was absent, so I ended up going with someone random. She expressed her feelings about Benet to me… and… let’s just say… she transferred the second semester. She also fell down the stairs that day. It was such an odd experience. Not to mention the first class I went to my shadow attempted to introduce me to the class and the teacher interrupts and tells both of us to sit down because she insisted we shouldn’t waste time considering they had a test that day. I don’t know if I have ever felt more of a burden than that day. Anyways, North was the last and final school I shadowed. I shadowed my neighbor, Tatum Imburgia, and arguably the best person to exist. I loved my experience and she was obviously convincing enough because here I am today. 

But I wish college decision-making was as easy as high school was. Im torn between Indiana University and the Fashion Institute of Technology located in New York City. Im fully deciding between two completely different futures. So I thought I could put my thoughts on paper and hopefully come to a final decision. This may or may not confuse me more, but I am running out of ideas that would help me make my final decision a little faster and I am willing to try absolutely anything at this point.

Below is my melded pros and cons list for each school. 

FIT

-Number one fashion school in the world

-Has my exact major and choice of study(fashion business management)

-High percentage of the students that choose my major got into their preferred place of work.   

-Semester abroad in Florence Italy 

-I DONT KNOW ANYONE (obvious con)

-Rooming situation is not my favorite 

-I do not know what people do on weekends here.

 -very far from home 

IU

-Got into Kelly School of Business 

-Also can do a semester abroad (lots of choices, not just Italy) 

-Best friend as a roommate 

-I KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE GOING 

-Sorority. (self-explanatory, take this what you will) (could b considered both a con and pro)

-Slim chance I’ll be homesick (close to home)

-My sister and neighbor who I am really close with both go here 

-Very basic choice. Lots of North people going here. Not much of a change.

Written by Margaret Atwood 

You Begin

You begin this way:

this is your hand,

this is your eye,

this is a fish, blue and flat

on the paper, almost

the shape of an eye

This is your mouth, this is an O

or a moon, whichever

you like.

This is yellow.

Outside the window

is the rain, green

because it is summer, and beyond that

the trees and then the world,

which is round and has only

the colors of these nine crayons.

This is the world, which is fuller

and more difficult to learn than I have said.

You are right to smudge it that way

with the red and then

the orange: the world burns.

Once you have learned these words

you will learn that there are more

words than you can ever learn.

The word hand floats above your hand

like a small cloud over a lake.

The word hand anchors

your hand to this table

your hand is a warm stone

I hold between two words.

This is your hand, these are my hands, this is the world,

which is round but not flat and has more colors

than we can see.

It begins, it has an end,

this is what you will

come back to, this is your hand.

The poem “You begin” by Margaret Atwood is a jumbled incoherent meld of ideas and the least confusing thing happens to be the title. My first read through my smile slowly diminished into a demented smirk, I was perplexed, to say the least. As I read the first stanza I immediately was reminded of the incomprehension I felt when interpreting Vardaman’s chapter in As I Lay Dying. He discusses his mother as a fish, similar to Atwood declaring “a fish, blue and flat” (4), both illogical statements, and here I wondered what is with authors and fish? Not to mention Atwood does not explain her utilization of a fish, she instantly changes topics after already introducing such a complex one to the discussion of an eye? To make matters worse she goes from the conversation of a fish to an eye to paper to mouth to a moon than to the color yellow? She must be indecisive I thought and I prayed the next stanza would be more coherent than the last. And right when I thought I understood what direction Atwood was taking in the second stanza, she confused me with this very line, “the colors of these nine crayons.” (16) What does that even mean? Are we actually talking about crayons here? Is this a metaphor? Before Atwood was discussing nature, hence diction like “rain” “trees” and “world” and at first I thought she was listing off analogies like window and rain, green and summer, world and round, but this idea of nine crayons seems completely irrelevant from the prior topic and contrasts my assumption of Atwood using analogies in her writing. At this point I didn’t know what to expect, I read on even though my mind was disoriented from what I read previously. The next stanza was actually plausible, I just read it a few times nice and slow; however, the next stanza read, “You are right to smudge it that way/ with the red and then/ the orange: the world burns.” (19-21) I believe it is safe to say from here on a shift occurs and the new consultation lies with what the bigger picture is, what are the takeaways? And it is too soon to know, therefore I read on racking my brain with a feasible conclusion of what world and colors have to do with a fish, moon, and eye. In the back of my mind, I am rationalizing all these unrelated topics and as I am reading the next stanza, it is here where I find a pattern. Atwood writes her poem with the intention of having a confusing stanza followed by one that makes sense. It seems like she utilizes this technique from the beginning. And I can justify this true because after the reasonably written stanza I am greeted with another unclear stanza that reads, “The word hand floats above your head/ like a small cloud over a lake.” (25-26). Im actually going to leave this line here with no explanation, I spent my fair share of time speculating what this possibly could mean. Moving on and happily coming to an end Atwood somewhat concludes her poem with the idea of hands, our world, and colors. I got her representation of looking past what is given to us as she explains in this particular line, “this is the world/ which is round, but not flat and has more colors / than we can see.” (31-33) but I’m still baffled with her decision of choosing animate objects like a fish and eye in her poem if her final takeaway seems as simple as–the world is not what it may seem– I’m starting to think it was for the sole purpose of misleading readers. If that was her intention, she did just that. 

And it continues…

Two weeks ago I discussed how superhero friends are truly a man-made gift. To recap: a superhero friend is an individual who knows you like the back of their dominant hand and knows nothing else but loyalty. At times it seems their one and only purpose in life is to add stability and be there for you for moral support; but, let’s not forget the necessary addition of bad decisions and pure chaos they bring when having two contrasting minds be friends. 

Now, 

I wouldn’t technically describe these next pair of individuals as a die-hard best friend sorta thing, rather a twin, a twin flame if you will. People who I have talked to enough in order to know their likes, dislikes, interests, and morals. Everything that they have said or done I understood, or have done it before. They are the exact reflection of me and talking with them is easy, I don’t have to think about what I’ll say next, and the conversation flows as if I’m already having an internal discussion with myself. They are the exact reason why I feel seen, heard, and safe. 

Let’s start with Duncan, shall we? I’ve known him for thirteen years now. He is one of the smartest, funniest, and arguably the most talented individual I have ever met. Not to be the bearer of bad news but this story is kind of an odd one, a devastation actually brought us together, it made us closer. He was under the impression he was different and no one understood him, he was convinced down to his last molecule that he will never open up, never let anyone in, never share an ounce of emotion. Until he did. Duncan is truly the one person that could change my rbf into a smile, make me laugh, make me feel–that’s a big one. I think that is actually the reason why this friendship works, our stubborn tendencies and lack of wanting to express and regulate our emotions is what may or may be the reason why we like being around each other. I mean, it’s hard, why trust people when we live in a world like this? Regardless though, Duncan is an individual that makes me feel not alone. Oh and if I described him with a color it’d be purple, that’s his favorite!

Next is Lei. 

I met her around this time last year actually, I trained her while I was working at Empire Downtown Naperville–never work there by the way– but that’s a story for another day.. Anyways, Lei is a special person. I gravitated to her instantly as soon as she spoke. She told me she was from Hawaii and moved here somewhat recently. While she was speaking my brain was empty and I was completely in awe. Before I even said a word I wondered if she knew what I was going to say next. She is the exact definition of a twin flame. Every single word uttered I had agreed with. At our age, there is not much to do, you can party, you can hang out with friends, you can get a job, you can maybe go to Chicago in your free time, but there are no real raw moments anymore. Social media is something we have all adopted out of pure boredom and it is actually more rare to find someone without a popular platform than to have one. And Lei was one of them, and so was I. We immediately took a step back and both looked at each other in a daze, this moment was actually surreal as silly as it sounds. We discussed more. By the end of the night, I could tell you her life story and she could tell you mine. I was so fascinated talking to someone who shares so many interests that were similar to mine, we kind of forgot we were working for half of the time and I’m sure customers were angry now that I think about it, but we didn’t care. It was nice finding someone who has a niche for photography, prioritizes the simple moments and mental health. 

You always have those superhero friends. You know what I mean. Like the ones where you can say or do anything with, without an ounce of hesitation in your mind that they’ll have anything else to say besides the expected answer you are wishing to hear, “yes” “of course” “I’m here for you” “let me pick you up” “are you okay” “let’s get coffee” “do you want to talk about it” the validation that they bring reminds me every so often, I am not alone. They are the people that I’ll look for in a crowded room with a sigh of relief and a message of gratitude reminding me that I will be okay. And without the superheroes in my life, I couldn’t imagine what life would be like. 

Every superhero within my life reminds me of a specific color. Every movement graceful or inelegant to every wrong or right decision they have made leads me to believe their actions and personality resemble a certain color and I stand by every word written..

My first superhero is my blue.

Miss Alexa Lembach is a breath of fresh air and the color blue is one of the best pigmentations to describe this girl. The textbook definition of the color blue is free, self-expressed, trustworthy, wise, and joyful and she, she is all of the above. I have never met a more perfect human living carefree with her Tarzan-style curls and tanned skin, she belongs at the beach living a life with a repeated mantra of “spending every day like it’s her last.” 

My second superhero is my yellow. 

I have never been so quick to designate a shade with a person before. Tatum Imburgia is precisely the color yellow. Textbook definition defines the hue of yellow appropriated with qualities similar to enthusiasm opportunity, spontaneity, happiness, and positivity. Which is the exact blueprint of miss Tatum Imburgia. Of all twelve years of knowing and understanding her motive, I have yet to see her flustered about any given situation. She is always calm, but never boring, always filled with adventures that are bound to fail but we try anyway just for the experience. She is the exact person you request if you were introduced to a life or death situation, if you had to make one last call, and if you needed to laugh. Her presence let alone is enough and I promise you any word or action she says will make you feel better instantly. 

My third superhero is my red. 

With careful consideration I choose the color red to symbolize my beloved soulmate: Arianna Rose Sitzman. Textbook definition scrutinizes red as a shade resembling characteristics of energy, passion, excitement, courage, and attention. With an emphasis on attention, I would agree she is one energetic bright light who brings the most comfort and warmth to any given situation and her presence is the exact replica of home. 

Now I ask you this, who is your superhero?

To be continued..

“High school goes by fast.” I remember my elders always telling me this. But truly it is not a lie, it is an understatement to be quite honest. You know the word “yolo” and the other one “reputation” both of these words I have kept in mind throughout my time here at Naperville North, however one of them was is in the frontal lobe and the other is in my occipital. (Sorry I took anatomy I couldn’t help myself). Anyways, “reputation” has always been kept at the front of my mind since I took my first and last steps in and out of Saints Peter and Paul. In my middle school and junior high curriculum, we were always taught to do the right thing: to turn your homework in on time, to go to mass every Sunday, to wear no makeup, to always share, that different is bad, and that homework is important. And as much as most of those beliefs are true, I walked in my freshman year at Naperville North scared. Scared of difference, scared of freedom, scared of doing the wrong thing, and scared of what others might think of me. And let me tell you, that’s where I met a friend. A friend whose word at the front of her mind was “yolo.” I needed this type of friend. She made me less tense. Still to this day I struggle with “reputation” and needing to always do the right thing. But this is essentially a list of things I learned throughout my high school experience and a list of the best advice I can give to any junior transitioning to become a senior. (I wish I knew these things even before I went into high school)

Let us start. 

What I’ve learned through my experience at North is to get involved. Get involved to the point where you are exhausted. This might sound crazy, but don’t disregard this advice, let me explain. Throughout my years at Naperville North as much as I feel satisfied with my experience here I regret not doing a number of things. For one, to always take classes you have a genuine interest in, make good use of North’s wide variety of classes, and promise me to not take a class solely because your friend wants you to take the class, just because your friend likes earth science doesn’t mean you’ll like it too. (no offense to earth science majors love you all, it’s just an example). Two, and the best advice I can possibly give you is to be involved in a sport. The countless memories and friends you’ll make from simply just sharing a common interest with one another is unforgettable! I remember telling all of my friends and family that my one regret thus far into the school year is not playing volleyball during my senior year of high school. I believe as soon as I stepped foot in the contest gym decked out in orange and blue and gazing at the fat heads that outlined our bleachers, I was instantly devastated. That moment I realized I should have been out on the court experiencing pure bliss while hearing the crowd cheer our name, however, I was in the stands cheering on my fellow lady athletes on their senior night. Therefore take it from me, or at least do it for me. Do what you love, and don’t be ashamed of it. Third, go to every football, soccer, basketball, volleyball, dance competition, 80s dance, homecoming, I DONT CARE just go to every and any event Naperville North has to offer because I promise you those will be your best memories. Fourth, buy a camera, it doesn’t have to be a nice one, it can be a disposable, film, Nikon, Sony, anything of your desire, but buy a camera. It is easily one of my best purchases EVER. I was lucky to acknowledge my interest in photography at the beginning of high school, but let me tell you the number of friends you’ll make with a camera in your possession is incredible. Not to mention, bring the camera to everything, be known for having a camera at all times. Document everything so you have something to look back on. I know for certain that is something that I will always continue to do, through the remainder of senior year, college, and the rest of my life. Fifth, have a good relationship with your job (if you have one) know your boundaries, do not let them walk all over you, you know your availability and if it does not fit with your schedule it is okay to say “no.” That was probably one of my biggest regrets, even more so than not doing school volleyball my senior year. I missed out on so many activities because I was taking someone else’s shift. That, someone, was also a senior, and this is where the word “yolo” comes in, yes I did the right thing I took her shift, however looking back on it she had fun and I did not, I watched her have fun while she posted how much fun the 80s dance, senior scavenger hunt, football game, and senior toga day was. SO, LIVE OUT YOUR TEENAGE YEARS. I cannot stress this enough. We are only young once. Utilize “reputation” and “yolo” and let those words resonate with you! Use them wisely, don’t take advantage of them, and don’t let them take advantage of you. 

Take this advice with open arms because may I remind you, us seniors had two and a half of our precious high school years stripped away from us. Do not let high school go to waste. 

This prompt actually sparked an interest I didn’t know I had. I made a list of things that I think I would classify as my survival guide, let me know if you agree or what you would add to the list.

1. Get involved
2. Go to every event
3. Know the difference between “yolo” and having a “reputation” 
4. Have a good relationship with your job
5. Buy a camera 
6. Mend “beef” with friends
7. Make efforts. having a divided grade is annoying (in my opinion)
8. Do not care what others think of you. (I need to take my own advice)

& that’s all for now, thank you for tuning in on lemstake, it has been one hell of a year, to say the least !

Astroworld, let’s talk about it. 

Disclaimer: I did not attend this event, I am just highly opinionated. 

I want to shine some light on this event because I feel like this needs to be discussed and thoroughly dissected. For starters, for the people who did attend this concert, I can’t imagine what they are feeling right now. And as for the families who have lost their child, my heart is absolutely crushed, and no matter what anyone says or does for the families who have lost their loved ones nothing will amount to innocent lives being taken from pure stupidity and a situation that could have been easily prevented.  

If you don’t already know, there was a Travis Scott festival on November 7th, in Houston. Tragically, the Mayor of Houston, Sylvester Turner, confirmed that eight people had died, one being a fourteen-year-old boy and twenty-five individuals were transferred to the hospitals from the venue. On top of that, thirteen remain hospitalized including five people who are under the age of 18. 

I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what happened at the Astroworld festival this weekend and truly I’m more taken back with what has happened to humanity in our world. I don’t know where we went wrong. I can’t fathom the fact that many individuals went to see their favorite artist perform and instead woke up in a hospital bed traumatized for the rest of their lives. It is not normal for people to die at concerts and in many instances could have been avoided if people still knew how to be good people or at least be wary of their surroundings and be empathetic of others. I’m not making this a post to talk about who’s to blame but rather to shed some light on this situation. There were so many people that night who fought for everyone’s life around them. People screaming at the top of their lungs on stage to save people’s lives and people risking their own lives in order to save someone else’s. And I guess what I’m trying to say is that is what we need to get back to, caring for one another. 

I am completely disgusted with the number of videos I have seen where people are dancing on ambulances and essentially blocking their pathway when they could have potentially saved someone’s life and got them to the hospital in a safe manner. Not to mention Travis Scott encouraging the intense fan behavior and continuing to perform. I am not a lawyer, however, I did pay attention to consumer economics, and with a refresher of my notes, there are two instances where injury law is considered effective. One is the duty to mitigate damages, meaning if you have the ability to lessen or perhaps lower injuries or keep them from being aggravated/exacerbated it’s your duty to do it. The second instance is the premises liability cause, which requires notice and knowledge of the situation. I don’t know about you, but I have seen numerous videos taken by fans showing that Travis had in fact, noticed and had knowledge of someone that was dying or someone that was already dead and if he would have just made an announcement and let people know that those individuals needed medical attention or the EMS it could have saved lives and actually helped him from not being sued by so many angry fans. 

But honestly imagine the people who trampled the individuals on the floor fighting for their lives to get up, just going about their lives today as if nothing has happened. Many will say they were unaware of what was going on around them. But let’s change this. If anything, this situation has opened my eyes. There have been plenty of artists that have stopped their shows due to a fan being passed out, let alone dead. Even rapper artists similar to Travis Scott. For example, the $uicideboy$ explains at the beginning of their concert proper crowd etiquette, “first things first if you see someone fall down, you stop, and help them back up.” It is literally such a simple task and a reminder I guess is needed nowadays. We also have Logic, Billie Ellish, even Trippie Red, and Asap Rocky stopping their own concerts due to a fan passing out and directing the crowd to calm down and telling the people beside them to pick those who have passed out, up and bring them water. Madison Beer even takes it a step further and takes care of her fan herself and gives her her own water, tells the crowd to scoot back, and tells her authority to allow the girl all her water and all her food backstage. I know I am missing a few artists too, it is really not that hard, Travis needs to learn from his peers.

I think I can strongly say without the hellacious year of 2020 I would not be the same person as I am today. Might be a bold statement because I know everyone deems 2020 as one of the most dreadful experiences in their lifetime, which is respectable, I get it. But the way I learned about how the world works, what activities brought me the most joy, and how close my sister and I could truly be when we are together would not have been identified if I didn’t partake in the “dreadful” 2020 year. 

My journey began the day it was announced we would have “two weeks” off of school due to COVID-19. I was a sophomore at the time and thought of this as a blessing. The only thing on my mind was hanging out with friends, going on spring break, and finding a dress for the sophomore spring dance, obviously, what else would I be possibly thinking about. Catching the coronavirus was clearly the least of my worries and apparently, I had more complicated things to worry about at the time. 

My ignorant sophomore year self was quickly humbled when further information was given about how critical this disease truly was and what symptoms would surface if you came into contact with an individual who had COVID-19. Quarantine was brought into the equation shortly after. Two weeks turned into a year and a half. That year and a half I learned more about myself than anticipated. In fact, I learned about the world. When we were out of quarantine I got my first job, I also learned how to communicate again. Heavily embarrassing to admit, but who knew the break-out room feature on a zoom call could create such sheer awkward silence. Not to mention the discovery of anxiety that would shower over me once a group project was announced. I remember immediately thinking: a group project over zoom is basically staring at each other’s black screens and muted. I find this comical too because I remember the duration of the school year when we were actually at North I was so dependent on group work to save my grade. But now it’s quite the opposite, I’ve become completely independent because for some reason asking for help was both the scariest and embarrassing thing I could do to myself. 

Anyways, back to my job, I learned a lot through the duration of working at a restaurant in my hometown. I was only a hostess. I was paid minimum wage starting at ten, and my pay gradually increased as my efforts began to be noticed by others. I never minded working, it made me grow up; but on the contrary, I also learned about selfish owners, unorganized managers, and entitled people. I also learned how observant I truly am. I knew how many hosts we needed on weekends for the restaurant to run smoothly. I understood the importance of separating two best friends on one floor because they wouldn’t pay attention to the customers otherwise. I knew if the manager was busy not to interrupt and I’d be better off problem-solving. I noticed that no one took inventory of the crewnecks and shirts that were carelessly displayed at the front of our store and I decided the chalkboards out front cannot always have the same wording each week or else customers would get bored. And I would listen to the managers complain about the same recurring employees, however, the large stack of unread applicants collected dust while lying in the corner. Little details I observed and fixed myself got me a long way. I learned a lot about myself that year. I learned about the world. And more importantly, experienced a job that took advantage of me and my availability. With that being said, numerous lessons were learned during quarantine and I advise anyone to put their time and effort into anything that they are truly passionate about, as you will get a far better outcome. What did 2020 teach you?